which gpu to get

[nfsfan]

hi

i am going to upgrade my monitor to a 24".since gaming on such a big screen needs a better gpu,i have narrowed these choices to these four :

 

1.8800 gt 256 mb

2.hd 3850 25/512 mb

3.hd 3870

4.9600 gt

 

my budget is about $150 (if any of these cant fit,i look for mail in rebates at newegg).

 

i am an avid movie watcher both sd and hd rips..and game with the latest titles ocasionally.

now the bigger question is compatibility with os x86 and linux.i suppose 9600gt isnt supported yet,so that leaves it out of the equation.

 

 

a good performance,backwards compatibility to pcie 1.1(i have an asus p5ld2-vm se board) is all required..

 

any suggestions?

[abscheele]

I'd say the 3870, it's compatible and the most powerfull card you listed, If you were willing to go $20 higher you could get a 8800GT 512 on newegg which would be a little better